TNAG-2527-FCO40-3696-Hong-Kong-China-Relations-Committee-1992 — Page 29

Visit to the Dalian ETDZ

CONFIDENTIAL

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62.

In the afternoon, the delegation visited the Dalian ETDZ (Annex IX). We travelled through an uncongested first class toll road. The zone looked better developed than the Qingdao ETDZ, with broad landscaped roads and impressive purpose-built low-rise factory buildings. The experience was a big contrast to the old area in down town Dalian.

63.

We met Mr. Ban Yaori (E

Committee of the ETDZ and Mr. Tian Changming (

), the Chairman of the Administrative

田昌明 ), the Vice-Chairman.

They emphasised on the importance of Hong Kong's investment in the ETDZ. We were

told that Hong Kong was the largest source of foreign investment, with 104 investment

projects, compared to 84 from Japan and 23 from USA. They also indicated that, contrary to what we had been told in the morning session (paragraph 55), Hong Kong was on top in

terms of the total value of investment, although the exact amount was not specified. The largest Hong Kong investment was a US$30 million joint venture operation which produced electrical products. This was however small compared with a US$80 million French investment and the US$60 million investment by Canon Business Machines of Japan.

64.

There were two ways through which an investor could obtain land in the ETDZ. He could lease land levelled by the ETDZ at an annual rental of Rmb12/sq. m, adjustable every 3 years, or obtain land use rights for up to 50 years at US$70/sq. m. In the latter case, development of the site had to comply with the official zoning plan. We were told that the price of land there was cheaper than that in Shanghai, but higher than that in Qingdao. The ETDZ officials expected that, by the end of the 8th 5-Year Plan, all 20 sq. km of the present ETDZ would be fully taken up, and that the zone would become the new city centre of Dalian.

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